Thief

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the data shows a clear path to playable performance. The only preset that clears the 60 FPS playable threshold is Low, delivering 78 FPS on average. Medium comes close at 59 FPS, which sits just one frame below the playable mark, while High drops to 45 FPS and Ultra falls to 43 FPS. For users who prioritize smoothness over visual fidelity, Low is the only option that guarantees a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS line.

Moving up to 2560x1440, the situation becomes more constrained. No settings level reaches 60 FPS. The best recorded average is 53 FPS at Low, followed by Medium at 41 FPS, High at 31 FPS, and Ultra at 29 FPS. Even the lowest preset leaves a 7 FPS gap to the playable threshold, meaning users at 1440p must accept either reduced frame rates or consider lowering the resolution entirely.

At 3840x2160, the outlook is considerably worse. Low settings produce 31 FPS on average, Medium drops to 24 FPS, High falls to 18 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 17 FPS. None of these approach the 60 FPS target, and even the most forgiving preset delivers less than half the required frame rate. The measured minimum at Medium is 20 FPS, with a maximum of 27 FPS, indicating that even the most stable configuration at 4K remains firmly in unplayable territory.

The verdict per resolution is unambiguous: only 1920x1080 with Low settings achieves playable status, with an average of 78 FPS. The database records no playable settings for either 1440p or 4K, and the best settings at those resolutions are marked as null, confirming that no preset meets the 60 FPS requirement.

CPU and GPU Roles

The measured frame rates across resolutions reveal that the Intel Arc B370 is the dominant constraint in this pairing. The Ryzen 7 9700F is a high-end desktop processor with a PassMark multithread score of 36,470 and a single-thread score of 4,691, placing it in the 94th percentile among all CPUs. By contrast, the Arc B370 sits in the 5th percentile among GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 1,184 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. This massive disparity in relative standing points squarely at the GPU as the performance limiter.

The scaling pattern across resolutions confirms this. At 1080p Low, the combo produces 78 FPS. At 1440p Low, it drops to 53 FPS, a reduction of roughly 32%. At 4K Low, it falls further to 31 FPS, another reduction of about 41%. This steep drop-off as resolution increases is classic GPU-bound behavior. If the CPU were the bottleneck, frame rates would remain relatively flat across resolutions, since the processor workload does not scale with pixel count.

Preset scaling within a single resolution reinforces the same conclusion. At 1080p, moving from Low to Medium reduces the average from 78 FPS to 59 FPS, a 24% decline. Moving from Medium to High drops it to 45 FPS, another 24% decline. High to Ultra brings it to 43 FPS, a smaller 4% decline, suggesting diminishing returns from the most demanding settings. These reductions are driven by increased GPU workload, not CPU demand, since the Ryzen 7 9700F has ample headroom with 8 cores and 16 threads.

The CPU's capabilities are more than sufficient for this title. Its PassMark physics score of 2,122 and integer math score of 120,788 indicate strong compute throughput that would handle game logic and physics without strain. The GPU, however, with only 1,280 shading units and a 6.144 TFLOPS FP32 rating, simply cannot keep pace at higher resolutions. The measured data shows that even at 1080p, the GPU is the limiting factor, as evidenced by the sharp FPS declines with each preset increase.

At 1440p, the gap between the CPU's capability and the GPU's delivery widens further. The 41 FPS at Medium and 29 FPS at Ultra are far below what the CPU could support. At 4K, the GPU is overwhelmed entirely, with all presets landing between 17 and 31 FPS. In summary, the Ryzen 7 9700F is not the constraint in any scenario; the Intel Arc B370 determines the playability ceiling at every resolution.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Thief at 60 FPS on a 1080p monitor?

A: Yes, but only at Low settings. The recorded average at 1920x1080 Low is 78 FPS, which exceeds the 60 FPS playable threshold. Medium settings fall just short at 59 FPS, while High and Ultra produce 45 and 43 FPS respectively.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1440p with this hardware?

A: There is no playable preset at 2560x1440. The highest average recorded is 53 FPS at Low, followed by Medium at 41 FPS, High at 31 FPS, and Ultra at 29 FPS. All fall below the 60 FPS target.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important for this game at 4K?

A: The GPU is the dominant factor at 4K. The Arc B370 produces only 18 FPS at High and 17 FPS at Ultra, while the Ryzen 7 9700F has ample compute headroom. The CPU is not the bottleneck at any resolution.

Q: How does the Arc B370 compare to its nearest GPU rivals in raw performance?

A: The Arc B370 scores 1,184 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. It trails the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 by 0.2% (which scores 1,186) and the ATI Radeon HD 5770 by 0.5% (which scores 1,190). It leads the AMD FirePro M2000 by 1.4% (which scores 1,168).

Q: What is the playable status of this combo at 1080p Ultra?

A: Not playable. The average at 1080p Ultra is 43 FPS, which is 17 FPS below the 60 FPS threshold. Only Low settings at 1080p achieve playable status.

Q: Does the Ryzen 7 9700F have near-identical CPU alternatives?

A: Yes. The AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX scores 69,875 (0.2% lower), the Intel Core i7-14700KF scores 70,163 (0.2% higher), the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X scores 69,515 (0.7% lower), and the Intel Core i7-14700K scores 69,355 (0.9% lower).

Similar Performance Alternatives

For the CPU, the Ryzen 7 9700F sits in a tight cluster of high-end processors. Its average benchmark score is 69,996, and the nearest rivals are all within a 1% delta. The AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX, with an average score of 69,875, is effectively identical at a 0.2% difference. The Intel Core i7-14700KF scores 70,163, which is 0.2% higher, making it a marginal step up in raw compute. The AMD Ryzen 9 7950X trails by 0.7% with a score of 69,515, while the Intel Core i7-14700K is 0.9% behind at 69,355. In practical terms, swapping the 9700F for any of these chips would produce indistinguishable frame rates in Thief, since the game is GPU-bound in this configuration.

For the GPU, the Intel Arc B370 is a low-percentile part, and its nearest rivals are older discrete and integrated graphics solutions. The ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 scores 1,186, a 0.2% advantage over the Arc B370's 1,184. The ATI Radeon HD 5770 scores 1,190, a 0.5% lead. The AMD Radeon HD 7650M scores 1,192, a 0.7% lead. The AMD FirePro M2000 scores 1,168, which is 1.4% behind the Arc B370. None of these alternatives would change the playability picture: they are all within a few points of the Arc B370, meaning they would all deliver similar sub-60 FPS results at 1440p and above, and only hit 60 FPS at 1080p Low.

The combination of a top-tier CPU with a bottom-tier GPU creates a lopsided pairing. The CPU alternatives listed above would all behave identically, since the GPU remains the bottleneck. The GPU alternatives, meanwhile, would all produce nearly the same frame rates, because none of them offer a meaningful performance advantage over the Arc B370. Users seeking better Thief performance would need to look well beyond this GPU tier, as the nearest rivals do not represent any upgrade path.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this pairing ranks 3,433 out of 3,720 combos. That places it in the bottom 8% of all tested systems, a reflection of the GPU's low relative standing. The Ryzen 7 9700F alone sits in the 94th percentile among all CPUs, but the Arc B370's 5th percentile GPU ranking drags the combined system down significantly.

The rank is consistent with the measured frame rates. A combo that cannot reach 60 FPS at 1440p on any preset, and only barely does so at 1080p Low, is expected to sit near the bottom of a database that includes many high-end configurations. The 287 combos ranked below this one would likely feature even weaker GPUs or CPUs, but the practical takeaway is that this system is not competitive for modern gaming at higher resolutions.

The data indicates that the CPU is not the reason for this low rank. If paired with a stronger GPU, the Ryzen 7 9700F would likely move the combo much higher in the rankings. As configured, the Arc B370 caps the system's potential, and the rank reflects that ceiling.

The Verdict

Can this PC run Thief? The answer depends entirely on resolution and settings. At 3840x2160, no preset is playable. The best result is 31 FPS at Low, which falls far short of the 60 FPS threshold. At 2560x1440, the situation is equally clear: no preset reaches 60 FPS, with Low maxing out at 53 FPS. Only at 1920x1080 does the system cross the playable line, and only at Low settings, where it averages 78 FPS.

The verdict by resolution is as follows: 4K has no playable settings, 1440p has no playable settings, and 1080p has one playable setting, Low, with an average of 78 FPS. Medium at 1080p is tantalizingly close at 59 FPS, but it does not meet the 60 FPS requirement.

For users who insist on 1080p gaming, this combo is viable as long as they accept Low settings. The 78 FPS average provides a smooth experience with headroom above the threshold. For anyone targeting 1440p or 4K, this system is not suitable for Thief, as the Intel Arc B370 lacks the rendering throughput to maintain playable frame rates at those resolutions. The Ryzen 7 9700F is not the limiting factor; a GPU upgrade would be required to unlock higher resolutions or higher presets. As it stands, this is a 1080p Low machine for Thief, and nothing more.